Framework: using the past to shape a concept

Photographer: Matthew Staver

Photographer: Matthew Staver

[ Click on images above for slideshow]

At the first visit to the project site, the building’s history was evident in the different building forms – from the 1886 original framed homestead to the 1930s Snow White Beauty Parlor block addition and the 1950s renovation. As opposed to scraping the house, the project recognizes the importance of maintaining and building upon the history of the site and neighborhood. The original traditional “house” shape was celebrated by revealing the 1888 framing to become the figurative and literal center of the house. The spine of the original roof soars above the light-filled, open plan and creates an interior courtyard. To further this concept, a framed multistory sculptural wall serves to unify all three floors of the modern addition and borrows the aesthetic of the existing framing. A terraced plan was utilized to capitalize on the city views, as well as inform a sense of space at each level, and the simple palette of materials, along with re-use of the existing structure, kept the overall building cost within a minimal budget. The result is a home which uses its history as the building blocks for its new and functionally contemporary style.